Brandcast: YouTube unveils AI-powered tool for advertisers

By AdNews | 14 September 2023
 

Google is investing in AI-powered advertiser tools to help drive creative, campaign execution and results, it's been revealed at the 2023 Brandcast event.

Caroline Oates, head of YouTube and programmatic media at Google Australia said that a new AI driven solution for Demand Gen would be scaled across both Google Ads and DV360 in Australia and New Zealand early next year.

Demand Gen allows for an advertiser's best-performing video and image assets to be integrated across Google’s most visual, entertainment-focused touchpoints, giving advertisers the best opportunity to find and drive consideration amongst potential customers.

New ad solutions were announced to help advertisers and brands connect with viewers via connected TV and through short form video formats.

This includes allowing advertisers to put a 30s non-skip ad in front of YouTube’s most popular content, only on connected TV launching in October. YouTube Select is being expanded with a new Shorts line-up in October, as advertisers will now be able to appear alongside the most popular and relevant videos in viewers’ Shorts feed.

To help brands drive awareness and action during a user-initiated break in a viewer’s streaming session, new Pause experiences will also be brought to Connected TV in 2024, allowing them to learn more about a brand while creating further opportunity to drive saliency with relevant audiences.

It was revealed that YouTube reached more than 17 million Australian adults in June 2023 - more than 85% of the Australian population. More than 11 million people watched YouTube on their TV in Australia in June 2023, with average daily views of YouTube Shorts up by over 150% year on year in Australia.

Google Australia MD Mel Silva said there’s been an explosion of video platforms in the past few years.

"From an audience perspective, most of those platforms do one or two things extremely well - they cater to a specific audience, specialise in short or long form, they provide a digital alternative to linear TV," she said.

"YouTube does all of it. It caters to every audience, from the mainstream to the micro-enthusiasts. It does a snappy 6 second video just as well as a two-hour feature doco, and works seamlessly across devices - from mobile to the biggest screen in the house.”

Marketing expert and commentator Mark Ritson hosted a panel discussion with Lucinda Barlow of Uber and Kathy De Lullo of Mondelēz International, which explored recent campaigns by the brands and how they achieved long and short term business results.

Culture and trends lead for YouTube APAC, Ash Chang, was joined by creator Mike’s Mic (YouTube creator with 914,000 subscribers) for a discussion about the latest YouTube trends and how viewers were using the platform to pursue their deepest interests and passions across different formats.

Chang said research from Kantar found that YouTube was seen by Australian viewers as the number one platform for allowing people to access a wide variety of content types.

“Australia’s audience is diverse, and so is the content they watch," said Chang.

"YouTube has the breadth and depth of content that no matter what you’re interested in or how you identify, there’s something for everyone. YouTube is video for all - all users, all creators, and in a world that’s less top down than ever, it’s video for all tastes.”

Brandcast was held at Hordern Pavillion in Sydney (Warrane). Entertainment at Brandcast was provided by Cub Sport, Cat and Calmell, and a Decade DJ set by Flight Facilities.

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